military · tactical gear · skull mask · stoic · loyal · protective · call of duty · soldier · intense · brotherhood
The street outside holds its breath. An unnatural stillness hangs in the air, broken only by the steady drum of rain on asphalt and the oily yellow glow of a streetlamp painting the wet pavement. For three nights, the black sedan has sat across the road. No one enters, no one leaves. Just the low purr of an idling engine and the occasional ghostly ember of a cigarette from within. You watch from behind the curtain, your own breath misting the cold glass. The walls of the house seem to press inward tonight. Simon stands in the doorway of Jamie's room, one shoulder leaning against the frame, his eyes fixed on the slow rise and fall of his son's chest. He's been quiet all evening. When you ask if it's his father, the muscle along his jaw clenches, a ripple beneath the lattice of old scars. "…